49ers Batter Rams Again / Packers will be tougher next week

Ira Miller, Chronicle Staff Writer

Published 4:00 am, Monday, October 7, 1996

1996-10-07 04:00:00 PDT St. Louis -- The preliminaries are over, and it's time for the 49ers to play their first truly significant game of the season. They take their 4-1 record to Green Bay in a week, and you all remember what happened the last time they played the Packers. So here's the problem: Are the 49ers

playing well enough that this time will be different? Even they realized they made enough mistakes in yesterday's 28-11 walkover against the Rams that they might not have won playing that way against a decent opponent.

"We won the game, and yet there were some critical things we didn't do well that are going to cost us in a tough game," said George Seifert, who moved within a game of his 100th victory as the 49ers' coach.

"If we don't score close to the goal line, we lose. If we have a punt blocked, we lose. If we lose our (defensive) containment like we did a couple of times today, we lose big-time."

All those things happened yesterday.

Twice, the 49ers had first-and-goal at the Rams' 1-yard line and failed to score. But these were the Rams, so it didn't matter. Dexter Carter's 39-yard punt return, his longest of the season, and Ken Norton's fumble recovery enabled the 49ers to score two of their touchdowns -- both on passes from Elvis Grbac to Ted Popson -- on just 14 yards of offense.

With the Rams playing five rookies on offense, including the entire backfield, the 49ers' defense easily was able to control the game. The Rams crossed the 50-yard line on only one of their first seven possessions, and they scored their only touchdown after recovering a blocked punt at the 3-yard line with 1:46 remaining.

San Francisco sacked Tony Banks five times, including three by Bryant Young, who had his second straight monster game against St. Louis. The 49ers forced four turnovers, including a pair of interceptions by safety Merton Hanks.

It was the 49ers' 13th straight victory over the Rams, only two of which have been closer than 15 points. But next week, they go from playing the league's lowest- ranked offense to playing the top- scoring team. All we know for sure is that the 49ers will be paying attention.

"There were some things that didn't look good today," said safety Tim McDonald. "We've got to correct that, because a team like Green Bay, they'll expose you. Missed assignments, missed tackles -- we just can't have that against a good team."

"Green Bay is a game we all kind of put on our calendar as a game we want to play," said linebacker Ken Norton. "Green Bay sent us home in the playoffs to watch, and a lot of guys are not accustomed to that. If we ever wanted a test to see where we are, next week is our test."

Of course, before next Monday night, Seifert will have to decide just who some of the test-takers will be.

-- Grbac made his second straight start yesterday after his sore back eased sufficiently, but it's widely expected Steve Young will return to the lineup against the Packers. Seifert said only, "There's a number of things to consider as far as the health of the quarterbacks and how effective they can be."

Although he threw three touchdown passes, including Jerry Rice's first touchdown pass from a quarterback this season, Grbac was not especially sharp. He threw two interceptions and twice overthrew Rice, who appeared to be open. There were some possible explanations: Grbac was loaded down with protective gear for his back, and he missed a lot of practice time.

"I had so much crap on me, it was hard to move because of the padding on my back," said Grbac, who described himself as "about 90 percent" healthy.

Offensive coordinator Marc Trestman added, "I knew going in, it might not be pretty. He didn't get the practice time he normally might get, so I knew it might be sloppy at times."

-- With Derek Loville resting a sore knee, Terry Kirby had the best day by a 49ers' running back this season, rushing for 73 yards, averaging 5.6 a carry, and gaining an additional 57 yards receiving. Kirby also scored his first touchdown for the 49ers. Afterward, he said he did not expect to start against the Packers. Seifert said only that he wanted time to think about it.

Kirby handled the ball on five of the 49ers' first seven plays from scrimmage. But his big moments came in the second quarter when, on successive plays, he ran 14 yards and then made a 30-yard catch downfield that was reminiscent of Ricky Watters. Three plays later, he scored on a one-yard run.

"It felt pretty good today," said Kirby. "I knew a lot of stuff depended on me. I knew I had to step up and get ready to play."

Nevertheless, Kirby said he was used to sharing playing time ever since he was in college, and he said he would be content to continue last week's quarter-by-quarter arrangement with Loville.

The 49ers, whose offensive success in the "red zone" has fallen off drastically this season, were inside the Rams' 20-yard line on all six of their first-half possessions. But the halftime score was only 21-0.

Tommy Vardell couldn't get in on two plays from the 1-yard line on the first drive. A 76-yard drive to the 19 ended when a Grbac pass glanced off J.J. Stokes' hands and was intercepted by Todd Lyght. And just before halftime, from the 1-yard line, Grbac waited too long to throw toward Popson, finally throwing late and badly, and Keith Lyle intercepted. Trestman said the play initially was designed for Rice, but a player whom he did not identify lined up wrong and threw off the formation.

"I don't even know what I was doing there," Grbac said. "It was really just a stupid play on my part."

"I was very disappointed in the two (missed) opportunities (at the 1-yard line)," Trestman said.

The second one especially bothered Seifert, too, because had the 49ers gone up 28-0 at the half, he might have gotten Grbac out of the game sooner than he did -- four minutes into the fourth quarter. Jeff Brohm, playing for the 49ers for the first time in a regular season game, finished up.

Next week, with or without Young, the 49ers know their margin for error will be dramatically reduced. But there's also the matter of just how "big" this game really is; after all, it will be only mid-October.

"I've been part of teams that peaked too early and faded at the end of the season," said center Jesse Sapolu, who has been with the 49ers longer than any other player. "I think as long as we keep turning the wheel, so it's going full speed for the playoffs at the end of the season, we'll be OK."

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